On Mar. 2, as some celebrated the birthday of late children's author Theodore Geisel, known famously as Dr. Seuss, the author's estate announced it will stop publishing six Seuss books featuring racist images.
The Associated Press reported the announcement by Dr. Seuss Enterprises, the business arm of Geisel's publishing legacy, on Tuesday. “Ceasing sales of these books is only part of our commitment and our broader plan to ensure Dr. Seuss Enterprises’ catalog represents and supports all communities and families,” Dr. Seuss Enterprises said in an official statement posted online and to the Associated Press.
The books set to be pulled from publishing lines are And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, If I Ran the Zoo, McElligot’s Pool, On Beyond Zebra!, Scrambled Eggs Super!, and The Cat’s Quizzer.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises explained it made the decision last year with the guidance of experts and educators. The books feature portrayals that are "hurtful and wrong," the statement reads, promising that the business is "committed to action."
Geisel's legacy as a beloved children's author has long been complicated by his early career as a political cartoonist, during which he published numerous cartoons featuring anti-Japanese messages and ads depicting racist caricatures of Black people.
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But, by the 1950's, Geisel was publishing books that would endure as progressive children's literature, such as The Sneetches and Horton Hears a Who!. In 1976, Geisel issued a partial apology for his early cartoons, calling the drawings "hurriedly and embarrassingly badly drawn" and full of "snap judgements."
Still, many educators have slowly moved away from including Geisel's books in curriculum. Ahead of Geisel's birthday and this year's national Read Across America holiday — a day encouraging childhood literacy sponsored by public education advocacy nonprofit National Education Association — one Virginia school district announced it would no longer connect the holiday with Dr. Seuss's birthday. The district cited research that found "racial undertones" in his work, CNN reported.
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Some users online mistook the announcements as a full ban on Seuss's work.
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Others noted that recognizing the racist history of the novels was not the same as "canceling."
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Dr. Seuss Enterprises said in its statement that it will continue to review its book catalogue in line with its "mission of supporting all children and families with messages of hope, inspiration, inclusion, and friendship."
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